Can excessive worrying be reduced via stimulation of the vagus nerve?

Dutch researchers have developed a new tool to label DNA for studying chromosomes in live cells. The tool is non-invasive and can be applied in culture but also in living organisms, such as zebrafish embryos. The team published their findings in the journal Nucleic Acids Research.

Considering Mesoamerican Precolonial books as material objects

PhD Defence

Lecture, Faculty Lecture

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most frequent neurodegenerative disorder and the primary cause of dementia. The neuropathological features of AD include the occurrence of senile plaques, neurofibrillary tangles, decreased synaptic density, and loss of neurons. An obstacle in the study and treatment…

Mesoamerican Manuscripts: New Scientific Approaches and Interpretations brings together a wide range of modern approaches to the study of pre-colonial and early colonial Mesoamerican manuscripts. This includes innovative studies of materiality through the application of non-invasive spectroscopy and…

Studies in current archaeological applications of remote sensing and non-invasive prospection methods edited by Hans Kamermans, Martin Gojda and Axel G.

If it’s up to PhD student Guangsheng Du, patients don’t need to worry about big needles anymore. At the Leiden Academic Center for Drug Research (LACDR), he studied the use of microneedles and nanoparticles as a new vaccination system. ‘I want to create a more patient-friendly delivery method.’ He defends…

PhD Defence

Promotor: Jan van der Greef; Co-promotors: Mei Wang; Eduard van Wijk

Transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation (tVNS) was tested in chronic worriers. tVNS may reduce spontaneously occurring negative thought intrusions. After a worry induction, there was no longer an effect of tVNS. tVNS did not affect physiological responding to worrying.

Zebrafish is an excellent model organism for studying various human diseases. Due to opaqueness of the adult phase, in vivo studies are restricted to early embryonic stages. This raises the need for rapid sensitive and non-invasive in vivo imaging methods to follow developmental processes, not only…

The CMCB brings together microbial cell biology expertise in Leiden. It aims at optimal resonance between the groups and maximal exploitation of the available infrastructure and to develop innovative cross-boundary technology platforms.

Stimulating the vagus nerve, which provides a direct link between the gut and brain, makes people pay less attention to sad facial expressions. This research study by psychologists Katerina Johnson and Laura Steenbergen is published in the journal Neuroscience, and made it to the cover.

Macromolecular Biochemistry is a section of the Leiden Institute of Chemistry at Leiden University, comprising the PIs Marcellus Ubbink, Remus Dame, Aimee Boyle and Lars Jeuken.

A project to explore the configuration of different types of settlement and its role in the evolution of landscape, both in pre-Roman times and in the so-called Colonial landscape. We used several techniques of field survey, pottery classification and other non-invasive approaches to the archaeological…

Decentralized plug and play systems for energy production are the future picture of our society. Artificial photosynthetic systems are used for this purpose.

Discovery and development of Central Nervous System (CNS) drugs is hampered by high attrition rates.

Promotor: J. van der Greef; Co-promotor: E. van Wijk, M. Wang

Promotor: H.J.M. de Groot, Co-Promotor: A. Alia

Because we cannot directly ask babies about what they know or what they are thinking about, we must find smart and baby-friendly ways to figure it out! Below you can read about the different methods that we typically use in our studies.

This specialisation focuses on two important trends in health care: early diagnosis and developing the most targeted patient-specific treatment possible with the shortest possible recovery time and minimal side effects.

We are committed to provide you with meaningful, rigorous and quality graduate experiences in a personalized environment with a cutting edge research infrastructure and internationally renowned supervisors.

Psycholinguistic research

The programme of the 3rd International Workshop on Klinefelter Syndrome, Trisomy X, and XYY. International Workshop theme: 'A life-course perspective'

The Green algae Chara as model system for intra and inter cellular transport processes.

How can zebrafish research help to understand and fight human cancer?

... which build on self-regulation and stress-regulation theories and considers the modification of cognitions as a mediator of therapeutic change.

By detecting the tiny forces between a micrometer sized magnet and the spins of hydrogen nuclei, we can do MRI with a volume resolution that is approximately 12 orders of magnitude better than a conventional MRI.  

What is the population size/structure and distribution of tiger and leopard inside the Bardia National Park (BNP) compared with the population outside? What is the movement and home range and conflict pattern in time and space of tigers and leopards inside the BNP compared with outside? What constitutes…

Mission Director: Dr. Carina van den Hoven

Wim Jiskoot has been honored by the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists as an AAPS Fellow.

At the annual meeting of the postgraduate school for Experimental Psychopathology (April 6th), Andreas Burger was awarded the article prize for best academic paper of 2017.

Stimulating the vagus nerve, which provides a direct link between the gut and brain, makes people pay less attention to sad facial expressions. This research study by psychologists Katerina Johnson and Laura Steenbergen is published in the journal Neuroscience.

Nadine Akkerman and her co-applicant David van der Linden (University of Groningen) are thrilled that “Signed, Sealed, & Undelivered 2.0: Revealing Hidden Letters” was awarded an Internationalisation in the Humanities grant from NWO.

Andrea Evers has received an NWO research talent grant with Jelle van Leusden as the PhD candidate. This grant enables them to start a research project to examine whether automatically regulated responses, such as the circadian rhythm, can be conditioned during sleep.

On January 12 the Steering Committee Science4Arts awarded the application of Prof.dr. Maarten Jansen entitled:

An MRI scanner is much more than a machine alone. It is an extremely versatile technique that provides numerous opportunities for finding out more about the workings of the human brain, says Thijs van Osch, Professor of Radiology, with a particular emphasis on experimental cerebrovascular imaging. Inaugural…

A new computer simulation shows the promising possibilities of the booming field of topology. Smartly designed mechanical structures carry sound exclusively one way and are immune to fabrication errors. Publication on 17 July in Nature Physics.

The National Roadmap for Large-Scale Research Facilities programme of NWO enables the building or renovation of research facilities with international allure. Leiden NMR groups take part in the uNMR-NL consortium coordinated by Marc Baldus (Utrecht University) that has been awarded almost 18 million…

LUMC professor and gynaecologist Dick Oepkes was made a Knight of the Order of the Netherlands Lion on 15 April. Mayor Henri Lenferink presented him with the medal at the end of on online symposium to mark Oepkes’ retirement.

Ewa Snaar-Jagalska, Shuning He and colleagues from IBL, LION and LACDR reported on a new zebrafish study to understand micrometastasis of human cancer cells. They discovered a novel role for neutrophils in assisting metastasis formation, which provides critical insights for anti-cancer therapies.

On Thursday 24th of April, Fleur Visser successfully defended her PhD-thesis on social and migratory behaviour of dolphins and whales in the Agnietenkapel at the University of Amsterdam (UVA).

From molecular ping-pong to cassava in the Amazon, and from extraterrestrial life to special antibodies. Twenty-five researchers from Leiden University have been awarded a Veni grant from the NWO. A grant of up to 250,000 euros will give them the opportunity to further elaborate their own ideas over…

Researchers from the University of Oxford’s Bodleian Libraries and from universities in the Netherlands have used high-tech imaging to uncover the details of a rare Mexican codex dating from before the colonisation of America.

Pharmacist-clinical pharmacologist Robert Rissmann has been appointed Professor of Translational Dermatology. This extraordinary professorship has been created jointly by the Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research (LACDR) and the Centre for Human Drug Research (CHDR) to strengthen their partnership…

People appear to release their feelings of anxiety more quickly when the vagus nerve in the brain is stimulated with a device in the ear. In his doctoral research at Clinical Psychology, Andreas Burger examined new possibilities for treating symptoms of anxiety. PhD defence on 15 May.

Fighting against cancer, antibiotic resistance and disposable plastics: Ahmed Ali, Fredj Ben Bdira, and Valerio Barbarossa receive a LUF grant for their innovative and socially relevant research. These grants for academic talent are often an important step towards grants by NWO and other grant insti…

An overview of awards and prizes granted to our staff and students in 2020, as well as special appointments at Leiden University and other institutions.